Sunday, October 20, 2013

TONY WATCHES TELEVISION

Sleep does not come easily to me on many nights, the result of theblood pressure and gout medications I take. Fortunately, when I’mtoo tired to write, I can watch the TV shows I’ve recorded. Whichare far too many than can possibly be good for me.

Veteran readers know I’m a big fan of cop shows. I love the ideaof justice being served in under an hour. But I watch other stuffas well, including several fantasy/horror/sci-fi shows and sitcoms.As I write this bloggy thing, I am just “not tired” enough to makesome quick comments on things I’ve watched recently.

Bones has gotten off to a rocky start. Part of that is due to theprevious season ending on one of those dumb cliffhangers that somedumb-ass producers think will increase interest in their shows. Inthis case, master villain Pelant was messing with Bones and Booth’smarriage plans. When this cliffhanger was finally resolved in thefourth episode of the season, it was about as anti-climatic as onecould have imagined.

The season to date as been one ill-conceived subplot after another.Psychiatrist Sweets has a crisis of confidence. Cam is a victim ofidentity theft. The government wants the team to use some idiotic profiling computer. None of them rang true.

The high point to date has been “The Cheat in the Retreat” whereinBones and Booth went undercover at a couples retreat and which hadwitty performances by guest stars John Ratzenberger and MillicentMartin. Next up is the long-awaited wedding of Bones and Booth. Iam not optimistic.

Sleepy Hollow is my favorite new show of the season. Ichabod Cranewakes up after 200 years to team with a police detective in a wildbattle against the forces of evil. The chemistry between Crane andAbbie is wonderful with a delicious side order of mutual sarcasm.The Headless Horseman is shown to be one of the Four Horseman ofthe Apocalypse. While considerable back story has been laidout over the several episodes to date, there is also a satisfying“monster of the week” vibe.

Castle is also off to a rocky start. Beckett’s stint with the FBIwas awkward and neither her nor Castle seemed comfortable with theseason opening two-parter that followed last season’s cliffhangerending. It took four episodes and a Hail Mary pass to get Beckettback on the NYPD where she belongs. Add to this the inane subplotwith Castle’s daughter shacking up with the boyfriend from HippieHell and the series has fallen considerably in my estimation. I’mhoping it gets back on track soon.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. hasn’t again hit the heights of its premiereepisode, but it’s still a very entertaining show. Clark Gregg isoutstanding as Agent Coulson. I love the nods to the larger MarvelUniverse beyond the show. I give good marks to Brett Dalton (GrantWard), Ming-Na Wen (Melinda May) and Chloe Bennett (Skye). But I’mnot feeling the love for the Fitz-Simmons scientists played by IainDe Caestecker and Elizabeth Henstridge. The writers haven’t giventhose characters anything exceptional in the scripts. They shouldtake a look at what shows like Bones and CSI have done with theirscience geeks.

Supernatural always seems to be making it up as it goes along, butmanages to pull that chaos off well. Jensen Ackles is the drivingforce as Dean Winchester and Mark Sheppard is brilliant as actingmaster of Hell Crowley. Jared Padalecki often appears as if he’sstill figuring out Sam Winchester, but considering all the writersput his character through, that works for me. I get a kick out ofthis series and always look forward to it.

Arrow has gotten off to a great start. Last season’s finale calledfor serious consequences and the show is delivering on them. I’mliking Stephen Amell’s portrayal of Oliver Queen more each episode.He’s trying to make a better city. He’s trying to be a better man.And shit keeps getting dumped on him. Amell is underappreciated asan actor. David Ramsey’s Diggle is still a very cool character andI love Emily Bett Rickards’ Felicity Smoak. Also on my “like this”list: the prospect of more DC Universe elements like Black Canary.

What I’m not liking much is Katie Cassidy’s Laurel Lance. Neitherthe actress or the character adds to the show. Laurel’s switch tothe anti-Arrow side, even as her demoted father has come to acceptthe vigilante’s efforts as a necessary evil, rings hollow. She’snever going to add anything to this series, so maybe it’s time forher to move on to some other city and make a fresh start. I likeher better as an advocate for the little guys than the driven-by-hatred-and-grief district attorney she’s become.

Criminal Minds is struggling. The writers are going more for thegross-out than the compelling. New chief Esai Morales has bupkischemistry with the cast and his past relationship with A.J. Cook’scharacter, whatever the writers eventually decide it was, makes myflesh crawl...and this comes from a viewer who thought Morales wasfirst-rate in NYPD Blue. If things don’t pick up, this will be oneless show I watch.

CSI had a season-ending cliffhanger and, as is typical of such dumbgimmicks, dealt with it quickly and messily. The hooker daughterof Captain Jim Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) turns out to be some sort ofmurderous criminal mastermind? I hope the writers have the dignityto be embarrassed by such nonsense.

However, past the season opener, CSI seems to be in good shape andcontinues to entertain me. Elizabeth Harnois is knocking it out ofthe park as the quietly traumatized and vulnerable Morgan Brody. Anuncomfortable subplot involving David Hodges (Wallace Langham) andhis wildly improbable Italian fiancee has been resolved. The restof the cast is terrific. About all I could ask for is more screentime for Marc Vann as Conrad Ecklie. That character has come intohis own over the past few seasons.

4 comments:

Bones: I thought that the profiling computer subplot would have been a lot better if it was all a scam to get Sweets' confidence fully back. I really thought that was where they were going until the end.

Arrow: I also hate what they are doing with Laurel. I am hoping that this plotline ends with the resolution of the current cliffhanger. Felicity Smoak has some great lines. In the premiere did you notice the foreshadowing of the Flash?

Tony, do you have high blood pressure? I have critically high blood pressure, which I control naturally. I keep my numbers down to healthy levels by drinking beet juice. I buy fresh beets and grind them up in the juicer. Three beets will yield one glass. A glass a day will keep your blood pressure down, with no side-effects. It works. If you don't like beets, there are other foots that can help tremendously. Research it.

PS. The reason I always sign as "anonymous" is because I don't understand the other options. I'm not a computer geek, and I try to spend as little time as possible on the computer.

I love SLEEPY HOLLOW. It has been a while since a show grabbed me from the very first episode. I remember feeling that way about X-FILES when I saw the premiere episode of that show. I liked the recent Roanoke episode and the introduction of another of the horseman. I looks like the better known one will be returning next week.

I want to like Agents of SHIELD more than I do. Agents Coulson and Wen are the primary reasons to watch the show for me. I just don't buy the two scientists and the other regular characters really haven't grown on me. I hope they don't drag the 'mystery' of who Skye is really working for out over the entire season. My guess is either A.I.M. or Hydra, under the guise of some group that she believes are the 'good guys'.

ARROW to me is how you do a comics based TV show, just as Marvel has shown us how to do them for the big screen. There are hints of a bigger DCU outside the city and there are still some mysteries about the island we haven't seen yet. I agree with you about Laurel and with the introduction of a Black Canary to the series, I think Ms. Lance can move on. It's funny but I originally thought that Oliver's younger sister was the dead weight on the show, but the final episodes of the first season have made me change my mind.

I know I've said this many times before, Mr. Isabella, but it's kind of a treat to know the writers who I enjoy watch and like many of the TV series I enjoy. Especially interesting to hear your opinions on them. So, thank you again for this bloggy thing.